


Who you talking to, man?

by Cartonsofcartoons



Series: Seasoned to taste (Much salt, very savoury) [9]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Civil War Team Iron Man, Even though she doesn't actually show up, Gen, Humour, Not Natasha Friendly, Not Steve Friendly, POV Steve Rogers, People laugh so there's that, petty af, sorta - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-01
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-07-05 11:17:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15862542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cartonsofcartoons/pseuds/Cartonsofcartoons
Summary: “Tony, I’m so sorry, if I had known that you felt that way I would never have-”And Tony looked at him with anger, “If you had known that I felt anger and grief for my parents you wouldn’t have tried to kill me, or kill all those citizens in Romania and Germany for Barnes, would you?” He said sarcastically and Steve could only shake his head. How like Tony, to avoid his feelings.





	Who you talking to, man?

 

“Tony, I’m so sorry, if I had known that you felt that way I would never have-”

 

And Tony looked at him with anger, “If you had known that I felt anger and grief for my parents you wouldn’t have tried to kill me, or kill all those citizens in Romania and Germany for Barnes, would you?” He said sarcastically and Steve could only shake his head. How like Tony, to avoid his feelings.

 

When Natasha had mentioned back then, before it had all gone to shit in Siberia, when she’d tried to tell him that Tony was bound to react irrationally because he had a thing for Steve and seeing him with Bucky was going to be difficult, he’d ignored it. It seemed stupid and more importantly, pointless. He couldn’t stop then, not when Bucky was being threatened like that.

 

But now, things were different. Calm. Steve would like to say it was ‘better’ but it wasn't better. Tony was clearly still angry that Steve had chosen Bucky over him, and it showed. Restraining orders, stipulations in contracts, no SI manufactured weapons, and that was just the tip of the iceberg. Luckily T’Challa had given Bucky an arm, but they were still at odds for the rest.

 

His team was unhappy and it showed. They took it out on him at times, blaming Steve for all that had gone wrong in theirs. Tony had made a public show of washing his hands of them, their only interactions happening at Avengers fundraisers and what not. Even then, it wasn’t like Tony was a part of their group, that he needed the money, no, he operated on his own now with a few of his friends who all insisted on paying their own way. 

 

It was Steve and his side that needed that extra bit of monetary help and it stung. It stung even worse when Tony and his friends were constantly called in as guests. It had been explained to Steve that it was because the guests felt unsafe around him and his team. 

 

The ‘Defenders’ as they want by, were called in to stay as security, in case the Winter Soldier was triggered again, in case the Scarlet Witch went haywire with her powers, in case Hawkeye lost it and put an arrow in them, in case Scott Lang decided to steal from them, in case Sam Wilson decided to use his military training against them, in case the Black Widow decided to make them a target for information gathering and used her Bites on them, in case Steve Rogers (no longer Captain) decided to hurl something else if not his shield at one of them.

 

They weren’t trusted. So, no,it wasn’t ‘better’, only calm. But Steve could work with calm. Perhaps the clam would facilitate a proper conversation.

 

If only Tony would just  _ listen _ to Steve, they could make it better if they just worked together. But for that Steve needed to explain his position. That he hadn’t meant to take advantage of Tony’s thing for him. He finally managed to wrangle a bit of alone time with Tony at one of the parties.

 

“Tony, just...I know you have a thing for me and-”

 

“Wait, what?” Tony squints and made a face, as if he couldn’t believe what he was looking at.

 

“I know it must have hurt, and seemed like I chose Bucky but we’re just friends and-

 

“I don’t  _ want  _ you,” Tony said incredulous and Steve felt his heart break. “I’ve  _ never  _ wanted you. What gave you that idea?” He said with a huff of laughter. As if the very idea of Tony wanting Steve was so ridiculous, it was a literal joke.

 

“N-Natasha-”

 

And then Tony burst into actual laughter and didn’t stop.

 

“Natasha, the spy, Natasha? The one who says things with the express purpose of manipulating people to do things she wants them to, that Natasha? The same Natasha whose closest attempt at a relationship was with a man who fills her with fear, one she assaulted to her convenience to bring out his angry giant alter ego, that Natasha?”

 

“It wasn’t like that-”

 

“So, she didn’t say that I had a ‘crush’ on you right around the time when you were refusing to do something she wanted you to?”

 

“I-”

 

Tony laughed again, and it was the sincerity in it that gave Steve pause. It made him realise that Tony had never really laughed when he was with them, with the Avengers.

 

Was it all a lie? Was the Tony he thought he knew, that he thought he’d seen a mask?

 

He looked at Steve with derision, the anger all but melted away into amusement and Steve felt insignificant. He hadn’t felt that way since the serum, not really.

 

“I’ll just b-be going,” Steve stammered out and left, but not before he heard another burst of laughter from Tony.

 

Rhodes stopped him in his tracks, looking at him with suspicion. “Mr Rogers, I hope you haven’t decided you could use your enhanced strength of a  civilian again?”

 

The words had a few of the guests still lingering nearby move away from Steve but he barely even noticed. Something on Rhodes’s face relaxed and Steve blushed violently, knowing that Tony was walking out of the little alcove.

 

“Platypus!” Tony said and Steve could hear the grin in his voice, “You will not believe what I just heard!”

 

Tony’s laughter still ringing in his ears, Steve leaves.

 

It is the laughter that rings in his head, long after Steve has had his little ‘chat’ with Tony. It plays in an almost endless loop, like background music for his life. That full bellied laughter that had Tony clutching his sides as stitches formed. The laughter that ended up sounding like sobs because he’d laughed so much he’d ending up tearing up.

 

The sound that told Steve with absolute conviction that he was finally beyond their reach.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15415422) and [this](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15621972?view_full_work=true) both by [Wix](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wix/pseuds/Wix)


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